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Deadmau5
IAmA dead mouse that tours, makes music, plays video games and has a stupid cat. AMA. 'Do the shows begin to blur together? How do you stop that and after so many gigs is the joy still there?' joys still there... its just a big blurry joy. 'Hey I was in Tommy's public disservice announcement project and I've been actively talking to Scott recently about potential music stuff... and I'm in montreal!!! I wanna meet you!' aw i love scott! tell him im still in the market for a polyfusion system! 'How are you enjoying patch 1.8?' endermen suck basicly. 'What portion of your shows are mixed live and what's recorded ahead of time? Dope show either way, saw you in Hollywood' honestly... about 70 40. there is a LOT of programming involved to make a show a show... think of it like a movie... they dont do it all in one take. there are oppotunnities to busk it and improvise from time to time, and those windows are set in stone throughout the show... but... there is always a structure to follow to keep things working exactly how you want it to work and look exactly how you want it to look 'When you played Sophie Needs a Ladder in LA and Chi, you got off the cube to dance on stage with her for a minute, so that beat was pre-recorded probably. But what percentage of your other sounds are created live on stage? I've heard most. You're skills, creativity, and technical understanding of the genre is unmatched. You rock. That is all.' teh technical term for that is called a "loop" we have new technology available to us to loop a section of music for any desired amount of time. 'How did you get into H.P. Lovecraft's work and how has it influenced you? Particularly the "Cthulhu Mythos".' i dont know, i like the tongue in cheek shit... like FSM and whatnot. It just suits me well i suppose. Just picked it up one day and said "oh, rad... i like this" kinda like what some people did with the bible.... sorta. 'he was the super secret dj last year at beta.' shut up. it was a secret. a super secret. fuck, cant trust you for anything. 'HEY DEADMAU5!!! what's your favorite word?' "cunt" 'Will you sign my internet?' who should i make this internet out to? 'SO you signed Skrillex to Mau5trap and then he went and did OWSLA. How are you supporting his own record label or do you care?' well the TL DR version is... loved skrillys stuff, signed his EP, Atlantic was all "whatever dude, do whatever you want, the FFTL shitk is ours" okay... so we did, was successful, Atlantic went "FUUUUUU... give him back. look we found loophole!" so skrilly goes back to label hell machine, owsla i think is his way out of that. so im happy. 'Why do all the popular DJs try to look so important in their professional pictures... Its great you're reaching out with all this internet shit and not doing the 'i'm so important' and status crap that the DJ business has. Will just make you focus making good music.' same reason ambulance chasing claims lawyers do. ... i mean.... someones gotta get something outta that car wreck. yeah? 'My dad is Paul bowman, you know him, maybe you'd know him as promo paul from wen he was still in the music industry, he used to know one of your personal dancers' i dont have any personal dancers? unless your talking about the Brass Rail in Toronto.... thats another story. 'What inspired you to make Strobe?' a plugin actually. 'What happened at the Borgata in Atlantic City? On Twitter you said the event staff called you a retard? Whats up with that?' well on hindsight it was probably unfair on my part to post that... because it was just "one dude" who worked there, and not the entire staff. anyway... some guy yelled at me for standing on the stage equipment and seriously came out of the gate with the stupidest remark ive ever heard, not knowing who i was or what i was doing on it, either way... theres a proper way to address someone, and that aint it. were over it. 'I just rescued a stray cat and she's a huge bitch. Adorable, but she runs away anytime I try to go near her and only wants to play when I have food or am playing video games. She's impossible to keep around when I'm trying to eat pizza as she's basically a magician and acrobat and will go through any means necessary to eat said pizza. So, in a nutshell, how would you advise me to train this kitten? How do you discipline Meowingtons when he gets out of hand?' you dont actually train the cat.... the cat trains you to get used to it. work it out. 'Do you seriously think you'll be able to answer everything on here?' not everything. no. 'Do you think you are contributing to the "loudness war"?' im not trying to. 'Is it true that you are a dick in real life? Because you seem so friendly' im a friendly dickhead. 'does an excessive amount of touring impede with your creative process?' yes. bigtime. i love to be in my room, with my stupid cat, in my chair, with my gear. its just... a certain comfort zone i need to be in to do the things i want, musically. i suppose :\ 'Also how do you feel about Dubstep?' i love that band! i met the drummer, Chad... such a cool guy. 'How big is ur record collection' i have 3. 'Your older albums aren't on Spotify - any particular reason for this other than label BS?' nope.. probably not... sounds like typical label BS to me if anything... ill ask next time the powers that be get back to me. 'why are you so sarcastic?' why are YOU so sarcastic? 'how long did project 56 take you to complete?' 56 days. a track a day. huurrr. ;P 'How is Meowington's hip?' he got his swagga back... no more limpingtons :( 'How close are you with Skrillex, Feed Me, and other artists on your Mau5trap label? Do you guys hang out often?' sure, whenever our tours collide we usually catch up for dinner or crash in on each others shows. 'My friend lives next door to Andrew Simper (Cytomic) as you know. He says hi! See you next time you're in Perth.' rad! say ello to him the missus and the lil one for me! 'when does the narwhal bacon???' whenever it wants. 'You going to record some of those Livestreams now that your on the new site?' nah... but ill be on lots. 'Hey man, it's my girlfriend's birthday today - I told her about your AmA and she asked me to ask if you'd bring Mr. Meowingtons to see her? We understand you're a busy mau5 so failing this, a shoutout pic or something would completely make her day. Without being presumptuous, her name is Rachel. Cheers fella, keep it up :)' meowingtons says hi... just got off the phone with him, he's busy remodelling, so he wont be able to make it out. happy bday all the same :) actually it was #actionscript 'what other hobbies do you have other than making music?' jetskiing and wakeboarding. :D 'so did you hire Joel Zimmerman as your agent just to Troll the shit out of Promoters?' more or less. lol 2 are mine. lol 'What I want to know, as a huge fan, is why the total lack of any progressive style house recently? I loved 4x4=12 but I really miss the amazing melodies of Strobe, Brazil, Move for Me, I Remember... Any chance of that ever coming back?' of course. 'Hey Joel, why is the tour called "Meowingtons Hax"? I'm really looking forward to seeing you in Amherst in a few weeks!' we had to name it something. dunno, its just what came to mind. 'I saw that you posted a Cyanide & Happiness animation on your Facebook one time. I make those cartoons. I appreciate it, brah.' anytime... love those comics! :D 'So I heard you had the same guy who made Daft Punk's helmets, make your own... Isn't that kind of unoriginal? I mean Daft Punk really killed the whole secret identity thing and then you did the same thing...' incorrect. The first helmets were made by a Film prop maker in Toronto... at present, the heads are now created by the Jim Henson company. 'On a scale of 1-Lucifer, how hot is it inside the helmet?' depends on how hot the venue is really, most times its perfectly manageable.. LED doesnt emit much heat, if at all. its usually the humidity / btu's in the room that does it. 'Of all the shows you have played, what city had the most energy?' work it out: (link) 'Why dont you learn a real instrument?' ... why? you teaching skinflute lessons? 'I met you the first time you went to El Paso. Fun night but you were tired in the afterparty?' im always tired it feels like... i cant party like most of you. i just get so freaking worn down all the time. i dunno. 'Is it true that you won't allow anyone else to use Ableton Live, if they're playing before/after you? If so, why? ' are you fucking kidding me right now? lol.. ill humor this one... NOBODY CAN USE ABLETON IF THEYRE PLAYING BEFORE ME. HOW DARE THEY! ONLY I MAY USE THE MAGICAL ABLETON. NOBODY ELSE. NOT EVER. 'Also to happen to remember what happened to the guy that was selling anti deadmau5 shirts in LA for Beatdrops closet?' shhhh.... were still trying to find a good place to hide the body! j/k i dunno. but yeah, i remember that 'Deadmau5! How difficult was it in the beginning of your career to get started, and how good did it feel when you got your first real "success"? Strobe is my favorite by the way! :D' my first real successs, i thought, was getting on "The Smirnoff Experience" mini CD... which was shipped with some smirnoff products in Canada.... basicly this lil CD that came inside some 6pack of booze thing. i was so fucking stoked.. lol and made all my friends buy that booze for their copy of the cd. thats was totally my first moment.... wich i could relive that. 'How did it feel getting knocked the fuck out in Australia? Feels bad bro.' i didnt get knocked the fuck out. In fact, the kid barely landed a hit before he had about 13 of my stage crew and staff were on his ass for acting like a moron. remember, this was a creamfeilds private afterparty... the only people there were mostly my stage crew, the other DJ's and friends we toured with, n thats about it... ask whatever the fuck his name is how awesome it is to have getting bounced out of a nightclub as the highlight of his career. 'Who the fuck is Feed Me? I hear he's you under a different name, then I hear he's a completely different guy. I must know, I love his work.' John Gooch, aka "spor" one of my fav dnb producers of all time (before he moved on to his feed me project) check out his spor stuff... ribcage shattering! 'Currently there are three mice roaming around my apartment as I read this thread. Do you have any suggestions on what I should do? I am absolutely serious, btw.' peanut butter + box + string. worked for me in my first apt... i kept him as a pet for a few days... but i felt bad and let him go outside after. 'How many mystery schools have tried to induct you and which ones?' its a complete mystery. 'hi joel.' hi. 'Just want to let you know your apology was not enough. That beachball you pelted at my face at Voodoofest last October in new Orleans... That hurt bro. That hurt my pride. Nah, just kidding. That was somewhat of an honor. Got to say deadmau5 hit me in the face...with some balls? Yeah.... Anyway RELEASE MORE SHIT YOU FUCK.' YOU WILL ACCEPT MY BALLS AND LIKE IT! im tryin dude! im workin on a ton of shit on the road! promise! 'I saw arcade fire instead of your set at outside lands, are you mad at me?' nope! awesome band! 'I see you like H.P. Lovecraft. Arkham Horror?! Yes/No?' NO! 'Did you play at Motion in Bristol around 4 years ago? I went to a night there and was sure I saw you but I feel like I must be making it up as it's a tiny little place.' quite possibly? you know... im not really sure... maybe? 'Joel, Are you the same Joel Zimmerman who was involved with make the Xeo FreestyleWebsite? I cannot tell you how much that website inspired me.' hahaha... nice find! yep! thats me n my friend Chris Gardener from back in the day. funny! 'At your live shows, why do you act like a clown instead of DJing?' coz its fun. 'What are you looking forward to most in D3?' levelling past 13. :D 'I have a question. Why don't you do any of your own music? Why, instead of mixing, do you just plug in an ipod when you do shows?' because im not a dj. and i like ipods. 'How does it feel to be a total twat and have millions of fans still think you are the god of EDM? You must feel pretty damn good about yourself. I guess when you have some amount of talent you can just let go of any strain of character that a normal human being should possess... It sucks that the recent EDM scene has been flooded with bandwagoners and pushovers who are probably only in it for the drugs and hype. But to them it's just going to be a phase. In a few years (maybe after you've already made all the money you want) the real EDM fans will remain, and they'll be the ones who are boycotting your music and booing you off the stage.' how does it feel to be stuck up your own ass? cool... the world can boo me off stage. more studio time for me. 'Hello. What are the specifications on your helmet? I've been looking @ Hackaday tutorials and Youtube for ways to build things like that, but I don't think I would get the dimensions right.' well i do know off hand the "globe" bit is generally 14" ish... but hey man, do what feels right... i swear i musta have seen thousands of homemade mouseheads... and no 2 are ever alike. get all creative on that! make it yours :D 'Is there supposed to be a hidden track when you play moar ghosts and stuff on top of ghosts n stuff? Cause it totally kinda sort off works.' well.. its pretty much in the same key... so... yeah. but no, no dramatic hidden track was intended... i usually do 4 or 5 different versions of all my songs anyway for playing around here n there or mixing it in and out differently or whatever. 'Your music is terrible, you have no credibility and you are festering boils on the backside of electronic music.' k. 'Aren't you that DJ that did Faxing Berlin? Just kidding, but what's going on with your apartment? See ya in Boston in October. House of Blues sucks, btw.' its getting ripped apart! bought the PH next door basicly.. knockin down walls, levelling the entire place out, building a much larger and proper studio so i can focus on my craft alot more and learn some new tricks when the touring simmers down towards the end of the year. 'How did you get into creating the intense music that you do? Is there a method to 'practice' or 'learn' something? Keep up the good work by the way, absolutely love your stuff!' in all honesty... i just continually dick around with daws, synths, plugs, whatever does the trick... and just keep experimenting with this and that... its just... "hacking" i suppose... not really doing anything procedurally most times. just playin around makin weird sounds and melodies until something clicks into place and then i just develop off it and keep going until its polished.... its more of an "experience" thing than a "practice" thing. 'one of you again...pics or your a fraud...plus your set at edc sucked rat balls...sorry' did a fucking tiesto concert just let out or something? 'How much was realistically left of your set at EDC LA back in 2010? I read somewhere that the Fire Marshall pulled the plug.' i can't remember.. iirc, i think it was a venue curfew or event curfew issue, not so much a firemarshall thing... unless the firemarshall was enforcing the curfew... which also isn't unusual. events like that are almost always a clusterfuck no matter how organized you are anyway... someone always goes over a timeslot, or something with someones production fucks up, times get shifted by mere minutes, but towards the last couple of acts... those minutes add up and you can't really do much about it. whinning about it's useless really... we usually just play ball, and if they tell us to stop 5 10 or 15 mins early... no point arguing really, unless its a HUGE issue, in which case a press release would likely follow from the artists management n shit... but as ive said, its usually only 5 or 10 minutes at the worst... so.. we just.... yeah whatever. 'What do you think about that deadmau5 porn video (NSFW, obviously)?' i dunno. im fine with it... fuck, i cant tell what the internet to do. but in terms of "would i buy the dvd?" probably not. 'Hey Joel! Love your work. Huge fan. Few questions...' #What's been the #1 highlight of your career? #Why do you reckon so many people hate on you? You should see some of the other subreddits here... It's really a joke how many people hate on you. # i dont really know... its been an insane rollercoaster ride if you ask me... hopefully that highlight has yet to come. # its really a simple ratio... figuratively speaking, and in terms of anonymous internet folk.... if 20 people know what you are, what you do, or whatever, there's bound to be a couple online dickheads in the mix. 20 million... 2 million would sound about right. funnily enough, and im not making this up, i have yet to show up to a show, or signing, or meet n greet where ONE person has approached me with some form of negativity anything in the realm of what people would post online. Oh, cept this one dickhead in Australia. so.... 1 in quite a few million. doesn't bother me. 'Fuck haters. I love you.' fuck, haters! i love you! 'Sir, will you ever, if yes, when approximately, be in Germany again?' .. spring? im totally guessing here. but sounds reasonable to me 'Any chance of you like doing a mass file dump and releasing and alternate versions or stuff that just didn't make it?' perhaps one day i guess. 'When are you coming back to the Dominican Republic?' soon i hope! i loved that cave... our winters in Toronto SUCK! so... count me in. 'hi deadmau5. I am sorry i called you a dj at palladium... i sometimes still cant sleep because of what i said. you probably dont even fucking remember. haha... I was too nervous... you are my biggest inspiration in my music life. anyway, do you like korean food?' i really dont mind dude... comes with the territory. As far as Korean goes... i f'n love korean bbq... we have an awesome one on Queen St, in Toronto i frequent... usually stuff my face full of kimchi 'Missed your show last week in Silver Spring, bummed. Do you prefer large or small venues?' i loved the venue in silverspring... not too big, not too small... brand new place too, great sound... comfortable crowd... was really cozy and i didnt feel nearly as much pressure as i usually do during / before a show.... but... its good to sweat it out in a tiny club or get all agoraphobic in some crazy arena from time to time. 'South African here. I am beyond excited that you are coming. The whole country is excited. All my social media channels are: "OMG deadmau5". Any hints on dates yet?' we will make sure you know as soon as we know! :D (i really dont know the dates/venues yet) 'When you get an idea for Minecraft, do you tell Notch about it?' nah not really, but i bug him about everything else. 'is adam montoya aka seananners as awesome in real life as he is on video?' you bet! i love that dude... glad to have him as a friend. always good hangs with that guy. :D 'I saw a picture of you and came to the conclusion that I could totally take you on in a fight. Just wanted you to know.' come at me bro! 'Love your work with the Black Keys. I read this thread and was surprised to see no one has mentioned this.' oh thanks! i really liked that one too! wish i had more time to work on a proper full length remix... was on a tight schedule for the VMA's so i had to gun through it... i love that song. Maybe ill get the opportunnity to work with their music again sometime i hope! 'What the fuck. I knew that. I thought I typed zach. How the......' o_0 'How'd you end up pickin up Miss Detroit as your merch girl?' detroit girls dont take shit. dont woory, im still here... just trying to catch up with you all while touring.. s'kinda hard! 'Would you ever talk to a fan on the phone?' i dont talk to ANYONE on the phone. i HATE talking on the phone. all i do is bbm and text. :D 'Who takes care of your kitteh when youre on the road!?' my mom, or my sister. they dont mind him. 'Hey mau5! I saw you in Atlanta Sept 7th and you signed my pink mau5 head! Thank you so much you have no idea how proud and happy it made me!!!!' yay! good girl! yeah i dont mind tagging your awesome creations after a show, no prob! love em :D 'So I knew nothing about your personality before entering this thread, and I find the controversy behind your personality refreshing. You seem to not care too much about how people feel about you and I respect that a lot. Now about the no drug thing, has that been a life long thing, or was that only recently? Personally I've never done any drug including alcohol.' im not pro drug, and im not anti drug. i seriously dont give a fuck. im a complete atheist in that department. life is full of personal choice... im not going to slam any onto anyone else, unless its directly bugging the shit out of me.. in which case, ill let you know right then and there. Shrot of that... its all good. 'I just got out of tonight's (Wednesday) Montreal show. I'm in a bit of a rough spot and I learned around 8:00pm I could actually run and see the show. I had high expectations. I saw some comments here and there, some youtube videos, and I happen to work for a big-ass local circus company that happens to sort of be the best of its kind, and yet I was blown away. I had so much fun, danced my ass off, can barely talk after so much screaming. I'm happy. I figure this will be buried, got no idea if you'll ever get this, but hey man, thanks for making people happy...' hey man, i appriciate it! kinda gutted i didnt get a chance to peak at the cirque thing at the bell center. :\ next time tho! 'first every reddit post so i might as well make it worth it! anyway, why don't you have a camera guy following you around all the time and make episodes of what it's like to be deadmau5, just like some of my favorite bands do? I'm sure we'd all love to see what it's like to live the life of deadmau5 and see what happens when you're not on stage. i know you do some videos on your youtube but i feel like it's not enough ;__;' coz it costs alot of money, and i know youre not going to believe me, but outside of shows, my life is actually really fucking boring.